The Campaign Finance Institute’s executive director, Michael J. Malbin was invited to submit written testimony on October 28 to New York State’s Moreland Commission to Investigate Public Corruption, to be followed by a question-and-answer meeting at a date to be determined. Malbin is also a Professor of Political Science at the University at Albany, SUNY.

In his prepared testimony, Malbin said that “the best guardian against corruption is an informed and engaged citizenry.” Arguing that both parts were important, Malbin said that to help produce a better informed citizenry, New York needs stronger transparency laws to reveal the sources of funding for all campaign related expenditures, along with a more user-friendly electronic filing and disclosure portal.

The other part of the equation is a more fully engaged citizenry. “That is where public financing comes in,” Malbin said. The form of public financing being considered in New York State is similar to one in effect in for New York City’s municipal elections. The city offers $6 in matching funds for the first $175 a candidate raises from each individual donor. Malbin said that CFI’s research has shown that the city’s program has been responsible for an increase in the number of donors who participate in the system, the percentage of money that comes from small donors, and the diversity of the donors who give.

The commission had expressed a particular interest in the cost of public financing. Malbin said that matching funds would cost the state about $41.4 million per year over the course of four years, or $2.12 per New Yorker per year. Administrative and enforcement costs would add another $17 to $21 million per year, for a total annual cost of about $60 million.

Malbin also warned about the costs of delay. If the Commission wants a properly functioning system in place for 2016, it is important to make the key statutory decisions early in 2014 and then immediately start hiring staff to help write the regulations and implement the technology to further transparency. For this to happen, the Governor should include the new program in the executive budget he submits to the legislature in January.

The complete text of this testimony is here. Supporting reports and analyses are available at www.cfinst.org.

The Campaign Finance Institute is a non-partisan, non-profit research institute. Statements of the Campaign Finance Institute and its Task Forces do not necessarily reflect the views of CFI's Trustees or financial supporters.